Forever Golden: Chapter 19

WEST

Tightening the knot of a red tie around my neck, I consider this to be one of the few useful skills my father taught me. So, if he’s ever fishing for accolades, this is all I have for him.

A new black suit, a fresh haircut, and in less than an hour, I’ll have the hottest girl in this hemisphere on my arm. Usually, I avoid this particular dance like the plague, but for some reason the idea of it doesn’t repulse me this year. Without thinking about it too hard, I know why.

It’s her. Any excuse I can come up with to be around Southside, I’ll take it.

Come tomorrow morning, I’m getting her away from all the Cypress Pointe bullshit. Dupont Bayou is like a whole other world, the most laid-back place on the planet. There, we won’t have to deal with school. No Vin. No Pandora.

Her post last weekend had everyone losing their minds, wondering who this “little birdie” is that she mentioned. I was one of them until I got the frantic call from Southside, describing the contents of the mysterious envelope she received.

And imagine my surprise when I heard the news, that my crooked-ass father has plans to run the city. As if he doesn’t already have enough power and influence. I can only imagine the shit he’d pull if he had the police department—and damn-near everyone else—in his back pocket. There wouldn’t be a thing he couldn’t get away with and I’m guessing that’s the whole point of this stunt.

Now, things are starting to make sense—the two-month timeline he gave Southside to end things with me, the NDAs. He was always looking out for number one.

Himself.

Southside filled me in on bringing in her dad’s ex-partner. She didn’t tell him everything, but still, my first thought was that she’d fucked up by telling any of this to an outsider. But that was before she told me a bit more about him, how he stepped in and did what he could to lighten Hunter’s sentence, how he’d been like family before her dad got let go and their friendship fell apart. If any of this is going to work, we have to trust each other. So, if she thinks this guy’s on the level, if she’s willing to include him knowing Scar’s safety is on the line, I have to trust that she knows what she’s doing.

Hopefully.

The storm of speculation died down around midweek. By then, people were pretty sure that whoever Pandora had given that open invitation to would never be revealed, so they got tired of investigating. Only we know who the behind-the-scenes players are, including Vin being the one harassing the town’s digital snitch, posing as X. Or at least he’s the one who put someone up to the idea. Now, with what Pandora delivered to Southside, we can assume she knows it’s him, too.

I check the time and I’ve got twenty minutes to get to the other side of town. If I speed, I can make it in fifteen.

Passing my brothers’ rooms on my way to the elevator, I see both have their bags packed and on standby for tomorrow. It reminds me that I procrastinated until the very last second and still need to pack when I get in tonight.

“I’m out,” I announce.

“Okay.”

“Right behind you.”

I’m too far away to know who said what, but the plan is to meet up outside the school. The elevator doors close and no sooner than they do, my phone rings. Seeing as how it’s not the secret line, I know it isn’t Southside, but I definitely don’t expect to see Parker’s name pop up.

“Shit.”

I stare at the screen, ninety-nine percent sure I’m gonna let the call go to voicemail. But then I remember how I dismissed her at the party before the Championship. Then, she’d been trying to warn me about my dad’s NDA spree, and I blew her off. With the possibility of her calling to give some sort of heads up, I go against my gut and answer.

“What the fuck do you want?”

She scoffs into the phone and I don’t care that I’ve already pissed her off within the first millisecond of this call.

“I’m sorry. Am I interrupting while you’re getting ready for the Snow Ball?” she asks snidely. “Looked like you had fun playing dress up with your hood rat the other night. You always did have a soft spot for strays.”

Apparently, she didn’t miss Pandora’s montage dedicated to me and Southside’s shopping trip a couple days ago. She deserved a new dress for tonight and we thought that by going to a mall a few cities over, we’d avoid having our every move clocked. Obviously, we were wrong about that.

“It’s funny,” Parker says. “I always thought you hated these things.”

She sounds salty as hell, but I don’t call it out. Instead, I hit the button to unlock my car as my steps echo in the parking structure.

“What is it about her?” she asks. “I mean, yeah, she’s pretty or whatever, but so are all the other randoms you fuck. Did you choose someone so far beneath you because you needed an ego boost? Does being with her make you feel… superior?”

I don’t have time for this shit.

“Get a fucking life, Parker. I’m hanging up.”

“Do you even care?” she rushes to ask, halting me from ending the call.

“The fuck are you talking about?”

She scoffs and I start my engine, letting the call pick up on the car speaker.

“I lost everything, West—my scholarship, my friends. Yeah, I may have fucked up, but do you really think you didn’t have any part in that? You don’t think there are consequences for how you emotionally abuse women? For how you sweet-talk your way into their heads, fuck them, then fuck them over?”

I let out a breath when I pull out into traffic, resisting the urge to hang up.

“There a point to this call? Or are you just wasting both our time with this bullshit?”

“You’re such an asshole!” she shouts.

“Tell me something I don’t know.”

She’s fuming. Even without seeing her, I know this to be a fact. She’s one of those people who hates it when her anger shoots up to a ten, only for the person she’s directing it at to stay cool.

“My parents put the house up for sale, West,” she reveals next. “They’re getting me out of this city because—thanks to you and that bitch you’re sponsoring—they’ve realized how toxic this place is.”

I laugh. Can’t help it. “And I’m guessing you want me to believe this move has nothing to do with your dad’s dealership going under, right?”

I’ve got her so pissed now I can hear her heavy, angry breaths on the other end.

“Go fuck yourself, West.”

“As soon as you get some fucking help, Parker.”

The line goes dead then, and I’m left wondering what her point even was. Was hearing that she’s leaving Cypress Pointe supposed to make me feel guilty? Far from it. As far as I’m concerned, that bitch can move to the fucking moon and I wouldn’t give a shit. She made her own damn bed, now she can lie in it.

BLUE

“Red’s definitely your color,” Jules beams, looking me over in the mirror.

“I tried on about a hundred dresses and it came down to this one and two others. West hasn’t seen me in it, though.”

Jules laughs a little. “Wasn’t he there when you bought it?”

I nod. “Yeah, but when I realized this was the one, I stayed in the dressing room so he wouldn’t see me in it.”

Looking myself over, I let out a nervous sigh.

“Well, in this dress, you’re sure to put the ‘ho’ back in ‘ho-ho-ho’ tonight,” she teases.

My best friend, the class act.

“It’s super cute that he took you shopping.”

Listening to Jules swoon, I smooth both hands down the satin clinging to my hips, just above one incredibly high-cut split on the right side.

“I just wish he didn’t have to spend money on me,” I add, still looking myself over.

“Dude, your boyfriend’s a fucking millionaire. He can afford to buy you a damn dress without it taking food off the table,” she teases. “Besides, I’m sure you’ll make it worth his while tonight.”

She peers up from her phone to wink at me.

“Yeah, but it’s not just the dress. It was Scar’s party, and the alarm system, and the trip to Louisiana.”

“To visit his family,” she points out. “And like I said, he’s loaded and probably would do a shit-ton more if you’d let him.”

She isn’t wrong about that. With his generous heart, he’d probably pay all my household bills if given the chance.

“I just don’t want him to ever think I see him as a paycheck on legs,” I add. “As it is, people see him and they see dollar signs. Yeah, because of his family being loaded, but also because they’re already saying he’s gonna go pro. I just—”

“Stop,” Jules cuts in, grabbing me by the shoulders after setting down her phone. “You do this all the time. Something totally unrelated will have you stressed out, then you start picking at the low-hanging fruit. What’s really bothering you?”

Her question has my gaze shifting to the closet where, inside, a thick white envelope I haven’t had the heart to open rests on the top shelf. Inside it, is the enrollment information for Scar. It came yesterday after I reached out to administrators in my grandmother’s town. It only adds insult to injury that I have it sitting right on top of the envelope Pandora delivered, holding within it this city’s worst nightmare—proof that Vin intends to announce a mayoral campaign in the coming weeks.

“B.J., talk to me,” Jules says, bringing me out of my thoughts.

For so many reasons, I can’t do that, so I do something I hate. I lie.

“Everything’s fine. I guess I’m just nervous.”

She smiles and it’s warm, comforting. “You’re so used to being a grown up, you forgot how to let go. But I need you to promise me you’re gonna try.”

Hearing the truth in those words, I nod. “I’ll try.”

She pulls me into a hug that would’ve probably gone on forever if it weren’t for the knock at the door.

“Crap, he’s here,” she gasps, pausing to check my makeup before giving me the okay to leave.

With her seal of approval, I grab the leather jacket she’s loaning me. It completely undermines the formalness of this dress, but in an intentional, badass bitch kind of way.

I make it to the door, but when I open it, I swear my heart stops.

I’ve seen him in jeans and sweats. I’ve seen him in a football uniform, and even semi dressed up for Homecoming. But West golden in a suit is… a work of art. Especially one that’s tailored and incredibly well-fitting.

The dark fabric shows off those deliciously broad shoulders, cinches in at his waist, while also hugging his biceps and muscular thighs just a little.

“Well, shit.”

My reaction draws a smile from him. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”

I’m two seconds from telling him he can take it as a damn marriage proposal.

It takes a hard nudge from Jules to bring me to my senses, making me aware of having left West standing outside in the cold.

“Sorry. I’m ready. Just let me say goodbye to Scar.”

Jules has me by the shoulders again, stopping me.

“Text her. She’ll be fine. I’m here until whenever you get back, even if that’s not until tomorrow,” she adds with a wink. “Now, go.”

She gently nudges me out onto the porch, then closes and locks the door behind me.

West’s hand settles on my back and we walk toward the car. Stealing another glance at him, I swear he got even hotter since I turned away a second ago.

“You look… fucking amazing,” he says, eye-banging me so hard I’m honestly wondering if we’ll make it to this dance at all.

When he opens the passenger door and I step in front of him, I smile.

“Thanks. The dress is a bit tight, but with any luck it’ll loosen up some by the end of the night.”

His gaze slips lower until he’s staring shamelessly at my ass.

“I sure fucking hope not.”

Maybe that shouldn’t make me blush, but the heat blooming in my cheeks means I am. He offers his hand and I climb in, then watch as he rounds the hood of the car to join me. As far as ‘first dates’ go, I have a feeling this’ll be one for the books.